new thread
I've been reading this board for a couple years now, and in that time I have seen a huge number of posts asking how to straighten hair, and how to get rid of wave, or how to have hair like this or that celeb (usually a straight haired celeb). So, my question is this: Is straight long hair better/preferred/more desirable than wavy/curly long hair, and if so why?
I know there are a lot of proud curly headed long hairs on this board, but here seems to be more that are tormented by their curls.
I have thick straight hair, but I think if I had curls and or waves I would be just as happy. Why are there so many people that cannot accept that their hair is not straight? Is this similar to people's twisted view on breasts? Collectively we tend to value big breasts more than small, this is largely due to the media's portrayal of the "perfect" woman, but is the straight hair thing perpetuated my media too?
Can any curly headed men out there who try and try to straighten their hair give any insight as to why?
kilgore, just curios
because straight hair is eaier to style, control...and, in my opinion, simply looks better.
-person desperately trying to straighten his hair
You should be proud of curly hair (not that I have it). Take a look at the lead singer of the band Toploader, http://www.toploader.com/toploader/about/photos.html. He seems to have done very well with it, it's great!
i agree with chris. . .straight hair tends to look better. . .why? because naturally wavy hair has a tendency to sometimes get frizzy (not that all naturally wavy hair is frizy). those with straight hair always have the option of having wavy hair anytime they want by getting a *good* perm ( i say good, because a bad one can make your hair frizzy). therefore, they have the option. those of us with wavy hair can try as hard as we can to straighten our locks, whether it be by blow dryer, relaxers, straightening gels, waxes, etc. but it rarely ever acheives that *naturally* straight look.
plus, the guys i know with straight hair can get out of the shower, run a brush through their hair and be done with it. . .with my wavy hair, if all i did was run a brush through it, my hair would be so big and so U*G*L*Y, it just wouldn't be funny. . .so from my perspective, wavy hair even takes more time to care for. . .wavy hair breaks easier, is more coarse, you name it!
I've always wondered at the guys w/ curly hair who want it straight. I have hair that, when shorter, curls into perfect "spit curls" and when long and wet hangs in ropes, and when dry, tries to dread on me.
I wouldn't have it any other way. It took longer to be able to tie into a tail--for a while it would dry into a puff and make me look like a poodle, but now it's pretty amazing (my wife thinks so, at least, and she's the only person whose opinion I value, and most of the time, I ignore even that).
Think back to the guys who are desperate to get through the awkward stage. I never had one. I just let it curl, then one day tied it back in a tail and folks went "woaaa!"
Besides, one of the great things about growing your hair out is to observe the transformation in yourself. It's sort of a metaphor for a life getting set free. Every day, you can look in the mirror and say "yes!" What you see is "you." Get used to it. If you look there and don't see what you want to see, then you need to do some more growing--both physically and spiritually.
If you're unhappy with what's happening as your curly hair gets longer, then you've got what my teen aged son calls "issues."
These guys who think straight hair looks "better" are using their own or someone else's yardsticks. And who cares about others' opinions? If we did, we'd spend thirty bucks every month or so to have some barber "style" our hair. Then everybody'd approve of us--and we'd be looking for some other avenue to express our neuroses.
Get used to your hair. One day it'll be really cool. It's like nobody else's.
And just think, if it starts to fall out, it will be easier to hide your shame.
another tom
Advantages of straight hair:
Strands are generally stronger and of course they grow straight down. Both these things mean you can grow a longer mane.You get a tail instead of a ball if you do a pony tail. It takes much longer curly hair to make a tail-shaped tail.Straight hair is easier to comb or brush.Straight hair is easier to braid.Straight hair is less apt to be caught in the wind, so you don't have to tie it down or tie it back so much.Straight hair looks "neater" and thus appeases people who want you to look more like a shorthaired man.
Advantages of curly hair:
It has bulk! If you really like hair up front where people will see it, you'll enjoy having curly hair. Some straight haired guys complain that their mane looks "limp". Curly haired guys sure don't!Even if tied in a tail it doesn't lie down tight against your head, so you'll always look like a man with longer hair.Waves and curls add a lot of character to your mane - straight hair is far more boring.Curly hair traps air pockets and thus provides more insulation and keeps you warmer. It also fans out across your shoulders and back more, again, keeping you warmer. If it's hot you can always put it up, so this is not a disadvantage in warm weather.Curly hair is far more forgiving of minor trimming errors - many more curly haired guys trim their own hair.
All long hair is awesome! Celebrate whatever type of hair you have!
Strands are generally stronger and of course they grow straight down. Both these things mean you can grow a longer mane.You get a tail instead of a ball if you do a pony tail. It takes much longer curly hair to make a tail-shaped tail.Straight hair is easier to comb or brush.Straight hair is easier to braid.Straight hair is less apt to be caught in the wind, so you don't have to tie it down or tie it back so much.Straight hair looks "neater" and thus appeases people who want you to look more like a shorthaired man.
I once said that, "I like long straight hair, because it makes the head look like a triangle. If you look at the book-cover of Simon Singh's book called Fermat's Enigma, you will notice that Fermat's head is in a triangle! It seems fitting that the book is about mathematics."
It has bulk! If you really like hair up front where people will see it, you'll enjoy having curly hair. Some straight haired guys complain that their mane looks "limp". Curly haired guys sure don't!Even if tied in a tail it doesn't lie down tight against your head, so you'll always look like a man with longer hair.Waves and curls add a lot of character to your mane - straight hair is far more boring.Curly hair traps air pockets and thus provides more insulation and keeps you warmer. It also fans out across your shoulders and back more, again, keeping you warmer. If it's hot you can always put it up, so this is not a disadvantage in warm weather.Curly hair is far more forgiving of minor trimming errors - many more curly haired guys trim their own hair.
"Also, I like long curly hair, because it makes the head look like a ball."
I know, Bill, "I like long hair, because of the various geometric shapes that it can make."
Here's yet another opinion for you to ponder.
I have very thick, wavy hair that's about down to my shoulder blades now and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Before I grew it out, I always kept it fairly short and it was so straight that I had to use gel to get any style into it, so I figured that it would grow out straight. Boy was wrong, and disapointed at first. As it got down past my collor, it started curling at the ends. I thought, "Oh no, this isn't going to work." But I let it grow hoping that the weight of being longer would straighten it out. Needlees to say that didn't happen. I constantly kept it in a tail hoping that that would help straighten it out. Then one day when it was about shoulder length, my tail tie broke while I was out and I had no choice but to let it hang out all over, and that's just what it did. In that one day, I got more comments on how it looked good on me than I had since I started growing it out.
So I took another look at it hanging all over and realized it was good, and my wife liked it too, she says it looks like a lions mane.
Don't get me wrong here, I have nothing against straight hair, my brother in law has straight hair down to his lower back and it looks great on him. People just have to find a style that looks good on them and go with it, long, short, straight or curled, or even the dreaded mullet, it doesn't matter, as long as you like it. Those other longhaired guys that say you need to straighten your hair to "look right" or whatever, are just as narrow minded as those that think guys shouldn't have long hair at all. After all, wouldn't it be a boaring world if we all had to wear the same thing?
In h.s. and early college i tried desperately to straighten my hair. It was a conformist impulse. Looking back at pictures, it looked desperate too. Then a roommate in college said--why not let it curl? It was good advice. Generally what our bodies want to do is the best thing for us.